Rhodri realises his assembly dream

RHODRI Morgan has achieved his dream of a working Labour majority in the National Assembly.

His party re-asserted its dominance of Welsh politics in the early hours of today by taking 30 of the 60 seats in Cardiff Bay in an election which proved a disaster for Plaid Cymru.

The nationalists now have 12 seats, five down on their 1999 result. The Conservatives gained two, taking them to 11, while the Liberal Democrats remain on six.

The election was overshadowed by low turnout - just one in three voters went to the polls, a fact former Plaid president Dafydd Wigley said risked undermining the legitimacy of the assembly.

Labour gained revenge for losing seats in its South Wales heartlands four years ago by comfortably capturing Rhondda and Islwyn from Plaid.

Plaid lost two more seats to Labour in Conwy by 72 votes and Llanelli by just 21 votes.

There were also significant swings away from Plaid in seats it had hoped to take from Labour after narrowly failing to win in 1999.

Labour's victories in Wales came in stark contrast to the party's performance in England, where they performed badly in the local council elections.

Welsh Secretary Peter Hain described the outcome in Wales as "fantastic".

And he added: "This was a terrible night for the nationalists. Their fantasy of an independent Wales has been buried forever. This is the best result for Labour in the elections anywhere in Britain."

Welsh Labour leader Rhodri Morgan added: "Labour has always been the true party of Wales and I am delighted people have put their trust in us.

"We ran a positive campaign on schools, the health service, more jobs and safer streets. Now we will work for a healthier, wealthier and smarter Wales."

A Plaid Cymru spokeswoman expressed disappointment at the

result, adding: "Our message did not get across as we wanted."

Labour's only loss came in Wrexham where victory went to the town's former MP John Marek. Dr Marek was de-selected as the official Labour candidate earlier this year and replaced by his former secretary Lesley Griffiths.

The independent AM repeatedly upset local party figures with his outspoken criticism of councillors. He also angered assembly colleagues and caused controversy by urging the Communication Workers Union to stop funding Labour Party if it did not agree with party policy.

The first result of the night came at 1.16am in the key marginal of Islwyn where the size of Labour's victory set the tone for the rest of the election.

The poll brought mixed fortunes for the Tories who managed to win only one constituency - Monmouth - but secured 10 others via the regional top up lists.

The Liberal Democrats held their three constituencies, including Cardiff Central where candidate Jenny Randerson saw her share of the vote increase by more than 12 per cent. They gained three more seats via the regional top-up lists.

Today's result means Labour can govern the assembly on its own without having to rely on the Lib Dems, with whom they shared power since October 2000.